All Souls Night
by Arwen Jade Kenobi
Summary: ObiWan is visiting his and his late Master’s homeworld of Caldaan for the annual All Souls Night celebrations


Title: All Souls Night

Author: Arwen Jade Kenobi

Rating: G

Timeframe: One year post TPM

Summary: Obi-Wan is visiting his and his late Master's, homeworld of Caldaan for the annual All Souls Night celebrations.

Notes: Characters belong to George; I make no money off this. Caldaan is mine. All Souls Night is an old Celtic tradition that I'm borrowing. Titles derived from Loreena McKennit songs, whose lyrics you can find if you google them. (This could also be interpreted as slash, take it as you will)

_**Part One: All Souls Night**_

Embers filled the night sky of the planet Caldaan and perfumed the air with the scent of _kranen_ plants being burned on great ceremonial bonfires. They dotted the heaths of this world this night, and many would still be going when day broke. For tonight was All Souls Night, the night which would bring about the start of the new year as well as commemorate the lives that had been lost in the past year.

It was a great festivity every year. The entire planet, each village, spent the day preparing for the nights activities. Bonfires, candles, and lanterns were lit at dusk and would stay lit until the morning. Great banquets were held, a few games for the children, but mostly there were great dances around the bonfires. Dances speaking of a people's celebration for the past year, their readiness for the new one, and their grief for their loved ones lost.

One highlight of the night would be the great Dance of the Dead. In this tradition, one member from every family who had lost a member would partake. This person was usually the one the deceased had been closest to in life and would waltz with an invisible partner. This was ritualistically seen as one final contact between the deceased and the person whom they loved most. One final farewell between them.

The bustling of the groups preparing for this ritual could be heard as a soft breeze blew through the heaths. The wind served to cool down the celebrators as well as the fan the flames higher. This same breeze coursed through the hair of a Caldaanian who had only visited his homeworld twice before. He stood off to the side of one of the bonfires, holding a small lantern in his right hand. His long brown cloak fanned out with the breeze, briefly displaying his tell-tale uniform and his lightsabre hilt. His sea green eyes slowly closed as he took a moment of pleasure in the release from the heat of the fires. The Force knew it was the only pleasure Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Knight, had felt since setting foot here.

The young Jedi found himself wondering why he had come back to his world. This was only his second visit to Caldaan since being born in this very village almost twenty-seven years ago. His first visit had been with his late Master, the Sith slain Qui-Gon Jinn, to these very festivities. They had recently discovered then that both Master and Apprentice were from the same world, from the same village even.

Obi-Wan remembered that All Souls Night. Obi-Wan had been thirteen years old at the time, Xanatos had only met his end on Telos months earlier. They had been on a well deserved break at the Jedi Temple when Qui-Gon had asked his Padawan if he would accompany him to Caldaan to participate in the rites of this world. Qui-Gon wanted to mourn Xanatos in his own way. Obi-Wan had of course come and had watched his Master light a candle for his fallen Apprentice. Obi-Wan had found himself doing the same for Bruck Chun, for the guilt hung with him still.

The Knight sighed. Qui-Gon had been dead a year now. Obi-Wan somehow found it fitting to return to their homeworld; where both of their lives had begun. He had also received a communication from Qui-Gon's family, asking him to join them as they mourned their son. Obi-Wan could not refuse anything from the family of the only father he had ever known.

Obi-Wan tightly closed his eyes as he tried to force back coming tears. He soon discovered that there actually were no tears to concern himself with. _I am becoming used to his absence_, he lamented. It was the first time he had thought of his Master without at least the sting of tears touching his eyes. He found the idea almost insulting to his memory. The idea of getting over losing the only family he'd ever had in merely a year seemed a disgrace…

The fires leaped higher and a smaller group of people took familiar positions around the flames. The musicians began their new song; a primal beat kept by small, hand-held drums signalled the step to begin. Arms were raised in the air as feet began kicking up dew and dirt as they spun and reached towards the heavens. Soon, a plaintive melody played on a small, wooden flute accompanied the drums as the dance took on full force.

This was the Dance of the Dead. It was exactly the same as Obi-Wan remembered it, even the song was the same. Though neither Qui-Gon nor Obi-Wan had performed the Dance all those years ago he found himself yearning to do this for Qui-Gon strangely; despite having no knowledge of the Dance, nor truly believing in the concept of it.

Besides, Qui-Gon's sister had already claimed the Jinn family's right to that dance.

Seren Jinn was roughly six years younger than her brother. She was unmarried, but had taken in two orphaned boys several years ago who were now reaching their twenties. Seren had always had a strong relationship with her brother. Obi-Wan had always envied his Master for that, for Obi-Wan's own birth family was dead. He wished he could have met them at least once. However, Qui-Gon had only managed to visit Seren twice in the years Obi-Wan had been his apprentice. Letters were really the only way they communicated, and even those were few from Qui-Gon's end.

Despite it all, Obi-Wan still felt a touch of annoyance toward the woman. Had Seren ever been there at Qui-Gon's side during his greatest challenges? His most serious illnesses? Had she ever been his strong right hand on countless missions and his rock when he faltered?

Had Seren been the one to hold Qui-Gon in her arms as he died? Trying to provide some form of comfort when really her world was coming to a great and painful end…

The tears finally began to course down Obi-Wan's cheeks and he furiously wiped them away with the sleeve of his robe. The tears continued to spill, aided by the smoke caused by the _kranen _leaves blowing into his face. He turned away only to catch a glace of Soljef, Qui-Gon's elder brother, staring off into the smoke. Obi-Wan could not bear a conversation with him and quietly snuck away from the Dance.

The music died away as Obi-Wan went further and ended up on the moors, heading towards the River. As he continued on his path, we walked past a statue of a green warrior holding a red flower in his right hand. A cluster of candles and lanterns were piled at his boots. Obi-Wan remembered this would be where the people would be congregating later in the night, to watch the old year pass away with the rising of the sun. Obi-Wan knelt and left his lantern there before pressing on. He did not want to be caught there when those festivities began.

The River of Light appeared before him minutes later. The place where his Master had found the rock that now hung around Obi-Wan's neck. The place where they had both sought absolution after the deaths of Xanatos and Bruck, as well as to lay fateful events of Melida/Daan to rest.

A bridge crossed the waters and Obi-Wan climbed upon it and stood in the middle, facing the path the River would take to join the Eastern Sea, which he would have been able to see in daylight. It was an astounding view then, but was no less breathtaking at night. The young man found himself wondering if Qui-Gon had ever stood here and marvelled at this beauty. Perhaps he even saw it how. Or was he really a part of it?

_There is no death. There is the Force_.

"And the Force is Everything," Obi-Wan whispered. Those beliefs had been drilled into Obi-Wan since he could understand them. Qui-Gon did see this, for he was with him. Within him, a very part of him. He was the river beneath him, the night sky above him, the earth on either side of him, he was the flames of the candles…Obi-Wan could not continue.

He closed his eyes and threw himself into that great energy that his Master was apart of, that he was apart of; that the whole universe was apart of. Before he could go very deep, he sensed a ripple within the Force. Nothing dangerous to be sure, but something was happening. Obi-Wan sensed no one approaching and saw no shadows to indicate someone coming.

The breeze began to pick up again. A sound soon reached Obi-Wan's ears, a distant murmuring of sorts. Soon a whistling was heard through the grass, and Obi-Wan relished in the wonderful music of the night. The breeze soon became a true gust and the murmurings of before soon became actual voices. They were in the thousands, all speaking the native language of Caldaan, which Obi-Wan had never truly become proficient at. The voices blew past him quickly, but he knew enough that they were crying names. Names of loved ones, he knew, as they blew towards the dotted bonfires that Obi-Wan could easily see in the clear night. Obi-Wan left the bridge to face the fires again. With Jedi vision, he could see that the Dance was still in full force, the flames of the candles were higher than ever and the drums seemed to have become even more persistent.

As the thousand spirits continued on, one voice became louder from the masses. A single word was spoken, which caused every hair on Obi-Wan's body to stand on end. His breath caught in his throat, and he could have sworn his very heart-beat has ceased with the beloved syllables.

"_Padawan…"_


End file.
